“Blaming old computers and unanticipated software challenges, the Department of Veteran Affairs saw its pending claims inventory from Post-9/11 GI Bill participants peak in mid-September at 207,000, which was three times higher than normal for the start of a fall semester.”
“The sudden backlog caused payment delays of the housing allowance that student veterans rely on to pay monthly rent and other living expenses.”
“The backlog now is down two-thirds, to 73,000. But 11,000 of the remaining claims are more than 30 days old and 1,000 are more than 60 days old, violating the VA standard to process GI Bill claims within 28 days…”
“Paul R. Lawrence, VA’s undersecretary for benefits, vowed that GI Bill users won’t be inconvenienced by systemic payment delays again in the 2019 spring semester. But he also warned that housing allowance payments still might not be accurately calculated by then because the software challenges persist…” Read the full article here.
Source: VA officials say they were blindsided by computer problems, process changes on GI Bill payments – By Tom Philpott, November 21, 2018. Stars and Stripes.
